Pelicans must cash in on Zion Williamson's resurgent trade value

Zion Williamson would reportedly draw "significant interest" if the New Orleans Pelicans were to make him available this offseason.  

To steal a quote from the iconic musical "Newsies," the Pelicans must "open the gates and seize the day," and they best not delay.

Williamson is a phenomenal talent. Among players with the highest FG% ever (minimum 2,000 FGM), he ranks 12th (58.8 percent). To take it a step further, he boasts of the highest FG% for players with a career PPG of 20 or more, higher than Shaquille O'Neal, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Nikola Jokic.  

For a man of his size, the stuff Williamson does on the basketball floor is unprecedented. A talent like him comes around rarely, if ever. But the Pelicans have been hamstrung (quite literally) for far too long, waiting for him to realize his potential (and stay healthy). Last season, the Duke alum appeared in a career-high 70 games only to pull his hamstring in the play-in game. This season, he walked into training camp in arguably the best shape of his life, only to re-injure his hamstring within the first month. 

In the season's final stages, Williamson is again teasing the basketball world, especially New Orleans, about his extraordinary talents. The Pelicans should be pleased, and they've been expressing their joy through a series of social media posts celebrating his resurgence.

Their joy, however, should come from knowing that teams around the league still value Williamson, who has missed more games than he has played in his five-year career. The Pelicans must field calls on Williamson the second they're allowed to do so. If not, they're going to be reminded of the old "fool me twice, shame on me" adage.